SUNOCO PIPELINE L.P.

hazardous_liquid Incident —

Incident Information

Report Date
OperatorSUNOCO PIPELINE L.P.
Commodity—
Pipeline Typehazardous_liquid

Location

State
Coordinates40.31960, -76.04310

Cause

CauseMATERIAL FAILURE OF PIPE OR WELD
Subcause—

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

Property Damage
Lost Commodity
Public/Private Damage
Emergency Response
Environmental Remediation
Other Costs

Location Map

Incident Narrative

INVESTIGATION OF AN AREA OF DARKER SOIL REPORTED BY A LANDOWNER DISCOVERED A VERY SLIGHT WEEPING LEAK COMING FROM THE 14 INCH PIPE LINE. A TEMPORARY REPAIR WAS MADE. A SECTION OF THE PIPE WAS CUT OUT AND REPLACED WITH NEW PIPE. THE CUT OUT SECTION WAS SENT TO DNV FOR ANALYSIS TO DETERMINE THE NATURE OF THE FEATURE IDENTIFIED AS THE SOURCE OF THE RELEASE. THE RESULTS OF THE FAILURE ANALYSIS INDICATE THAT THE CAUSE OF THE LEAK WAS A PRE-EXISTING CAVITY IN THE PIPE WALL THAT WAS ASSOCIATED WITH THE LAMINATIONS. THE DEFECT LOCALLY REDUCED THE WALL THICKNESS, WHICH INCREASED THE CYCLIC HOOP STRESS, RESULTING IN THE INITIATION AND GROWTH OF FATIGUE CRACKS. FINAL FAILURE OCCURRED AS A RESULT OF DUCTILE OVERLOAD, RESULTING IN A LEAK.

About This Pipeline Incident

Pipeline incident data is reported to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). All significant incidents involving fatalities, injuries, or property damage over $50,000 must be reported.

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